One aspect of weapon safety has been the proper closing of the breech of the weapon. Because many weapons fire a projectile by expanding a high-pressure gas, failure to close the breech can result in significant weapon malfunction and harm to the operator of the weapon through exposure to the high-pressure gas, the projectile, and/or weapon debris caused by the weapon malfunction. Conventional techniques to ensure the breech is closed are typically limited to the visual inspection of the weapon, which is prone to user error. The need to determine breech position is also present in weapon training exercises where an instructor must ensure that a trainee is properly and safely operating a weapon by completely closing the breech prior to firing the weapon. Because there is currently no available means for electronic detection of the breech position of a weapon, new systems and methods for solving the problem are needed.